I want to stir up your mind to remind you that you have been given all things that pertain to life and godliness. But it is up to you to guard what God has given you.
I see many in the Body of Christ today who are moving on with God and staying with what God has told them to do. But I also see those who are moving in another direction. They're leaning to the arm of flesh and following after man's programs.
Some have become so involved with promoting the newest evangelism program or the latest doctrine that they've lost sight of what God has given them to do. They've even begun to compromise the basics of faith that have brought them up to this point.
A similar problem must have existed in Jeremiah's day because he said, "... Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord" (Jer. 17:5).
The Bible says that in the last days people will have "itching ears," heaping unto themselves teachers who will teach them what they want to hear (2 Tim. 4:3). So be on your guard. Don't get caught up in new doctrines and programs that rob you of the truth of God's Word.
You can't afford to become entangled with something that sounds and looks good but denies the power of God. You have to stand firm upon your convictions of faith and what you believe concerning the Word of God, no matter who comes down the road teaching something to the contrary.
Friend, we can't allow the enemy to turn us aside from the things that God has so freely given us. We've come too far to be robbed of the blessings that still lie within reach. We've come this far by faith; now is no time to quit!
The enemy is doing everything he can to try to stop the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is coming forth in full battle array because he knows that his time is short. But the devil hasn't been able to stop the move of the power of God since it was poured out upon the Church on the Day of Pentecost!
And now in this hour, faith and the anointing of the Spirit of God are in our hearts. But it's up to us to guard those treasures!
I believe that the Church is on the brink of a major revival. People are being saved by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, healed, filled with the Holy Spirit, and set free from the chains of the enemy as never before. And you and I have a part to play in this mighty move of God.
I want to encourage you not to let anything or anyone stop you from doing what God has called you to do. Stay with the Word and the anointing of the Spirit of God. It's the truth of God's Word and the power of His Spirit that will give you a "backbone of steel," they'll give you the strength to face any danger and to minister to a lost, hurting world.
Make every effort in the days to come to guard your heart as tenaciously as a bulldog guards his favorite bone. Take your stand in the power of the Spirit and in the word of faith, and don't back down from the truth that God has given you!
Excerpt permission granted by Faith Library Publications
Kenneth W. Hagin, President of Kenneth Hagin Ministries and pastor of RHEMA Bible Church, ministers around the world. Known for calling the Body of Christ to steadfast faith, he seizes every ministry opportunity to impart an attitude of “I cannot be defeated, and I will not quit.”
